The Odysseus lunar lander from Intuitive Machines stands erect on the moon and sends data to Earth, the American company announced about two hours after landing on the moon. This is the first time a commercial lander has achieved this. “It is a preparatory mission aimed at sending humans to the moon again within a few years,” says astronomer Rob van den Berg.
The first commercial lander to land safely on the moon
It was quiet for some time after the lander touched down. But soon the saving word came last night. Odysseus stood safely on the surface of the moon. This is the first time a commercial mission has succeeded in doing this.
“They suspect it's against the wall of a hole somewhere.”
“They suspect it's hitting the wall of a crater somewhere,” says van den Berg, of the Sonnenburg Observatory in Utrecht. “This means that the radio signal is not quite perfect.” We may soon see a selfie that the lander can take.
In a year or two it will be the people's turn
This is a preparatory mission for NASA, which wants to allow people to walk on the moon again in a year or two. “This should be the beginning of more people getting to the moon.” Finally, there is a scientific basis. To achieve this, materials must be sent to the Moon and infrastructure must be built.
Read also | The commercial Odysseus spacecraft is set to land on the moon tonight with the help of SpaceX
Striking: NASA wants to do all this with commercial parties. Intuitive Machines is the first to do so now, so it will be able to count on a lot of trust from NASA. But NASA is publicizing its risks, so many other companies will also land on the moon. Elon Musk and SpaceX are aiming for the first moon landing with humans within a few years.
